Naldehra is a peaceful little place 29 km away from Shimla. The nearest railway station is Kalka. For some the biggest attraction would be the golf course which has been constructed by the orders of Lord Curzon. But I am no golfer and yet I enjoyed my stay. I am told it costs Rs 200 to play a round of golf at Naldehra, I am not sure if this is true as I did not seek this information first hand but if it is then it is probably one of the cheapest places in India to play gold at?

Quite close to the golf course is a small temple, as you can only find in the hills. I reached there after walking around the golf course. To enter the course there is a small fee of 10 or 20 rupees, try as I might I can’t remember which is the correct amount. People usually go around the route on horses but it is quite a beautiful walk. Apart from the locals I was the only person walking around. In July there were rains as well as mist. That meant some slush on the path. Still, it was quite manageable and a beautiful walk. When I went in I was the only person at the temple.

If you like to venture out you could walk out in any direction and find something to admire.

July being the rainy season every nook and corner of the forest walks were full of some form of life waiting to be clicked and admired in that order. There were mushrooms of different colors I clicked white, pink and purple. I do not what the wild berries are but they did make a pretty picture.

The place was quite green due to the rains and there were photo opportunities every where. If you walk for a kilometer or two you would reach the village of Durgapur. I walked as far as the small market in the evening.

There was a patch full of small pebbles and for a moment my feet lost contact with the ground, but luckily after being air borne for a moment I landed on my feet once again. Living in the city, the vast open spaces have such a special appeal to me.

When all this left me tired I had the recourse to the restaurant and the fine food thats available here. If you are afraid of gaining weight go for a long walk after that! Gazing at flowers and insects on the walks, it starts approaching the idea of a perfect holiday.

If you wish to try out the local cuisine, there is a dhaba near the golf course where you could try Sidu, a Himachali dish. It is a steamed dish made of flour and a heavenly filling (don’t ask me for the ingridients, I do not know, I only know it tastes great!) but it is served with ghee! There goes your diet plan once again.

To cap off everything the sunsets are glorious, I am told you usually get to see two rainbows at the sunset but I was not that lucky. Even then they make a breathtaking picture, an ideal time to laze around with a book and then to look forward to a hearty dinner and sleep.

It all started with a picture I saw of Prashar Lake on the web. I was completely bowled over! I wrote to the website owner Avnish Katoch and he put me in touch with the photographer Yash Raj. Gradually, I learned that to reach Prashar Lake one can take the famous Delhi-Manali route up to Mandi. From Mandi, one can hire a jeep up to Prashar Lake or one can take a bus from Mandi to Bagi (and not Baggi, which is in the opposite direction) and then trek the rest of the way.

Pic : Mridula

Both Sesha and I have motion sickness on the mountain roads and never drive in the hills. But I know of people who have taken their own vehicle up to Prashar Lake from Delhi (for basic driving information explore the Indiamike link at the end of this post). We are also very fond of walking. So, for us it was a bus to Bagi and then trekking up to Prashar Lake. At Bagi, there is one Dhaba where we had bread omelet and tea for breakfast. The young lad running the place told me it took him 1.5 hours to reach Prashar Lake. It took us five hours to cover that distance and let me warn you the way is all uphill.

Pic : Mridula

There is only one place to stay there, the forest department guest house that has to be pre-booked. After walking for five hours the people running the guest house were not very keen to believe us about our reservation. I simply told them that they have to give us the room as I was so tired after walking, I would not go away anywhere else. That worked.

The cook at the forest department guest house has to use wood to make food. So, you get either rice and dal or Chapattis with vegetables. There are two canteens at the lake where you can get tea and Maggi and basic food too if there are enough people at the lake.

Pic : Mridula

If by now you have started questioning why anyone in their right minds would head to such a place, then the answer is the because of the peace and tranquility and the uniqueness of the scenery. The lake on weekends is visited only by a few locals. During the weekdays you can have it entirely to yourself. And take a look at the picture, who would not be tempted to have such a place all to oneself, even if for a few hours!

Pic : Mridula

However, when it was our turn to come back, we refused to contemplate the steep trek route even though this time the walk would have been downhill. We managed to arrange a ride back with a jeep that had come to deliver supplies to one of the canteens.

If you wish to go, here are some useful resources-

A discussion on Indiamike, which I started to gather information before the trip and updates after the trip

My earlier article on Gonomad.com about the Prashar Lake.

Some stunning pictures of the Prashar Lake taken in December by a colleague